Updated

Updated · Fox News · Oct 21

Neyland Stadium Crowd Sets 130.3-Decibel College Football Record During Tennessee's Win Over Alabama

Updated

Updated · Fox News · Oct 21

Neyland Stadium Crowd Sets 130.3-Decibel College Football Record During Tennessee's Win Over Alabama

Q: Did Tennessee actually break the noise record, or does a 1992 Washington game still hold the true title?

Tennessee did break the **scientifically verified** college football crowd-noise record, but Washington’s 1992 Husky Stadium reading still has a strong claim to the **highest reported** mark overall. The distinction is in how the records are defined. Tennessee says Neyland Stadium reached **130.3 decibels (dBA peak)** for seven seconds during the Alabama game, measured with a **Larson Davis sound level meter** at field level and reviewed by the **University of Tennessee Health Sciences Department of Audiology and Speech Pathology**. On that basis, Tennessee called it the highest **scientifically verified** crowd-noise event in college football history, topping the previously cited verified mark of **127 dB at Penn State in 2007**. Washington’s often-cited **133.6 dB** reading from a 1992 game against Nebraska remains widely described as the highest **traceable** college football stadium reading. But it came from an **ABC sideline meter** at the touchline, and there was no common verification standard then. That does not necessarily make it wrong; it means it is harder to compare directly with Tennessee’s modern, calibrated setup. So the fairest answer is this: **Tennessee owns the best-documented and scientifically verified record at 130.3 dB, while Washington’s 133.6 dB from 1992 still stands as the highest reported historical reading that many fans and writers continue to recognize.** The sport has no single official governing standard, which is why both claims persist.

3 articles · Updated · Fox News · Oct 21

130.3 decibels was recorded at field level for seven seconds during Tennessee's game against Alabama, which the school called the highest scientifically verified crowd-noise event in college football history.
Tyree Weathersby's third-quarter sack with 3:56 left, followed by an Alabama delay-of-game penalty, triggered the peak as the Vols led 19-10; Alabama then committed a false start on the next play.
Tennessee said the measurement came during that defensive sequence at Neyland Stadium, where the noise appeared to rattle Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide offense.
Online debate persisted over older claims of louder games, including LSU-Alabama in 2022 at 133 decibels and a Nebraska game in 1992 at 133.6, but Tennessee said those were not scientifically verified.